Charles Broadwell

Publisher

Charles Broadwell is the publisher of The Fayetteville Observer and the president of Fayetteville Publishing Co. He is the 4th generation to lead this family-owned newspaper.

Broadwell is a Fayetteville native and a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He also has completed fellowship programs at Northwestern University and at the Poynter Institute in St. Petersburg, Fla. Broadwell began his journalism career at age 16 working in the Observer’s sports department. He served as the newspaper’s editor for more than 10 years and has been the publisher since 2000.

Broadwell is the author of “Our Century,” a book that was compiled from his series of oral-history interviews for the Observer in 1999. Among his professional affiliations, he is serving as the president for 2010-11 of the North Carolina Press Association. He serves on the board of the Press Association and the North Carolina Press Foundation (past president).

[NC 0101] - Part 1: Intro and Contribution (5:14)

Charles Broadwell, president & publisher, The Fayetteville Observer, says “this is our newspaper; we try to invest in quality, which means more pages in our paper … and a commitment from a talented staff to try to tell [the community’s] story and serve this community every day.”

[NC 0102] - Part 2: Strategic Changes (5:41)

Charles Broadwell, president & publisher, The Fayetteville Observer, says his newspaper has become “an emerging hybrid of digital and print since we launched our website in 1995.” The problem, Broadwell says, is that his newspaper “is moving at 50 mph, when we should be moving 100 mph.”

[NC 0103] - Part 3: Adaptation & the Future (9:57)

Charles Broadwell, president & publisher, The Fayetteville Observer, says, his newspaper is a community institution with great strength, but that can be an anchor weighing us down. “I believe in the power of the printed word,” says Broadwell, “but I know I can’t hang on to that.” He says the key to the future is “to give the people what we have, how they want it.”

[NC 0104] - Part 4: Prospects and Preparation (2:01)

Charles Broadwell, president & publisher, The Fayetteville Observer, says his newspaper is still hiring, strategically. He looks for a passion for journalism from his candidates. “The rest of it you can learn, and we can teach,” says Broadwell.